


this world's an ugly place but you're so beautiful

by 5_es_oh_es (YouMakeMyHeartCry)



Category: 5 Seconds of Summer (Band)
Genre: Ashton is silly and hot af, Calum is nice and looks after him aw, Cute Ending, I like to think I'm funny, Luke is lonely and bullied, M/M, but I'm not, im sorry about Mikey don't kill me I love him really, it's a monster it's so long, like really a lot, luke is awkward and blushes a lot, michael is a dick but he improves slightly, this sucks actually
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-08-25
Updated: 2014-08-25
Packaged: 2018-02-14 14:22:39
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 14,769
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2195067
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/YouMakeMyHeartCry/pseuds/5_es_oh_es
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Going to this party was probably the stupidest thing Luke had ever done.</p><p>Or, Luke is bullied and nobody really likes him but he goes to a party and everything changes. Well, he almost gets beaten to death but at least he has friends now.</p>
            </blockquote>





	this world's an ugly place but you're so beautiful

**Author's Note:**

> First off, to anyone who read my first fix, your eyes are glowing to my beating heart, thank you, the response was fantastic, so much better than I ever expected and I'm so so so grateful for everyone who commented or left kudos it means so much!
> 
> This started off well but it's a monster now and if you get through it all thank you I love you. 
> 
> I enjoyed writing it and I hope at least someone enjoys reading it! 
> 
> Title is from Going Away To College by Blink 182.

Going to this party was probably the stupidest thing Luke had ever done, he thought bitterly. 

It was the first party he'd ever been to, and he'd only turned up because he was turning seventeen in a week and he didn't want to be a party-virgin when he did. Things would be different, he thought bitterly, if his parents hadn't made him move. He was only eleven when they decided to get new jobs and take him halfway around the world, never to see his friends again. 

He'd started at Granway's Academy for Boys halfway through year 7, all bright eyes and wide smiles. But no matter how friendly he was, he was doomed from the start. As soon as he opened his mouth he was blacklisted; eleven-year-old boys can be cruel, and since very few of them really understood that Australian people speak differently, Luke was labelled a freak and became victim of constant childish teasing.

Despite what his parents had told him, it had never gotten any better. When Luke was Year 8 the school dropped the 'for Boys' and suddenly he was surrounded by boys _and_ girls and though they were much less violent it wasn't long before they all hated him just as much as the boys did. School was dismal.

He'd thought that sixth form would change things, but it hadn't, not at all. He still had no friends, and even though most people were mature enough to simply ignore him, there were still more than enough outspoken assholes that still liked to push him around, trip him up and call him things he'd never repeat. 

(He sometimes wished that he'd gone somewhere else for sixth form, but he led a very lonely life and had never associated with many people outside his school, so of course he assumed that he would be treated exactly the same way no matter where he went and at least Granway's was _familiar_ , at least he knew the best places to hide and the places where the worst of the bullies spent their time.)

Still, despite everything, he'd decided that he would go to Jesse Bell's annual pre-Halloween party (always exactly two weeks before Kristen Thompson's annual _Halloween_ party). He walked in two hours late, relieved when nobody seemed to notice him. He'd assumed that by this time most would be too drunk to recognise him, and it looked like he was right. He hadn't planned on attempting to socialise, instead choosing to take advantage of the free booze and find himself a secluded corner to simply watch people. 

It was bizarre, really, seeing all these people that he passed in the hallways in such a contrasting environment. In the hour or so that he stayed there, just observing, he saw a whole different side to so many people and he knew he'd never look at half his classmates the same way. It was nearing midnight and he was surprised to realise that he'd actually been enjoying himself. He'd had a few beers and was pleasantly buzzed, enough that his nerves had disappeared, and he decided to quit while he was ahead rather than risk drinking too much and doing something he would regret.

He'd almost reached the front door when they caught up to him. Really, he should have known it was all too good to be true.

"Hey, fag." Came a voice from behind him. The words were slurred and barely audible over the loud music, but Luke recognised the voice instantly and there was no doubt that they were speaking to him. He sped up, gaze fixed on the open door, his escape. He'd almost reached it, too, when the hand grasped his forearm and yanked him backwards. "Don't _fucking_ walk away from me, Hemmings." 

Luke gulped and turned to face the other boy, fighting to keep his face expressionless despite the panic bubbling up through his stomach.

"What do you want?" He asked, shouting so that he could be heard over the din. Michael Clifford smirked wickedly, squeezing Luke's arm tighter and making him gasp. 

"I could ask you the same question. What the fuck are you doing here? You weren't invited, faggot." 

Michael was alone, Luke realised with a start. Usually he'd be flanked by at least two other guys, but not tonight. That made him feel slightly better, but he still felt intimidated and tried to shrug away.

"I was just leaving." He replied, managing to escape Michael's grasp with a sudden hard tug and he immediately darted towards the front door. He breathed a sigh of relief as the cool air hit his face, convinced that Clifford wouldn't follow him. He was wrong, though. He'd only gotten halfway down the garden path before the older boy caught up, grabbing his wrist this time, bringing Luke to a halt. Clifford then stepped closer and, smirking, brought a hand to each shoulder and shoved him backwards, hard enough to send Luke flying. He landed on his back, winded, and he closed his eyes as he fought to catch his breath. 

"I don't know what made you think you have the right to be here, _fag_ , but you don't. You're a freak, Hemmings. Just go home." Clifford growled into Luke's ear, crouching down beside him. He then stood up and kicked his calf, but it didn't hurt much since he was obviously too wasted to put any real strength behind it. Luke watched him walk away, waiting until he was back inside before he struggled into a sitting position. He blinked a few times, trying to work up the strength to get to his feet, but instead he buried his head in his hands and let himself cry. 

Eventually he dragged himself over to the decking that stretched across the front of the house. It was raised from the ground a good metre or so, and was luckily pretty deserted due to the cold, so Luke sat with his back against the wooden planks, leaning his head back and breathing deeply. He'd hit his head when he'd fallen and there was a sharp throbbing in the back of his skull, painful enough that he gasped quietly every time he moved his head too fast. 

He must have dozed off because the next thing he knew someone was shaking him awake. 

"Hemmings, wake the fuck up." A voice hissed, and he looked up at the speaker, squinting against the bright light of a phone screen, pointed in his direction, most likely so that they could see him. He counted four boys, but there could have been a couple more, he was far too dizzy to tell. They were all looking down at him and he heard someone mutter something unintelligible, but obviously he was the only one that couldn't understand because the others all laughed loudly. The sound made his head hurt and he winced in pain.

"Michael said you were here, but I didn't really believe him until now. What the fuck made you think you could turn up?" The guy holding the phone sneered. Luke shook himself, managing to concentrate a little more on his situation. He recognised the speaker to be Nathan something, one of Clifford's friends. Either side of him stood the Hudson twins, Pete and Noah, and hovering on the end, looking rather uncomfortable, was a dark-haired guy Luke didn't recognise. 

"Clifford already made it quite clear that I'm not invited, so if you'll excuse me, I was just about to-" he'd just about scrambled to his feet when a sharp pain in his cheek cut him off mid sentence. He gasped, wide eyed. Noah had punched him. Well, the alcohol in his bloodstream meant it was more of a backhanded slap, but it still hurt and it came as a shock. They'd done a lot to him in the past, but no one had ever actually hit him. It was with a wave of panic that he realised what was going on; they weren't in school, so there was nothing stopping them from beating him up. That fact, coupled with the excess alcohol they'd all consumed, meant that Luke was basically fucked.

"You're not going anywhere fag. It's about time we taught you a fucking lesson. You've had this coming to you since you first started, fuckface. Should have stayed in Austria." Nathan slurred. Luke scowled, momentarily losing his temper.

"I'm from _Australia_ you fucking _moron_." 

Instead of a reply, Luke received another punch, this one more accurate and with a lot more force behind it. He stumbled backwards into the wooden decking, groaning as he felt his mouth fill with blood. He'd bitten his lip. 

He raised his arms in front of his face to defend himself as they all attacked at once. After a couple hard hits to his stomach he bent over double, which was a mistake because the next thing he knew there was a knee connecting with his left eye. He cried out, a strangled sob ripping it's way from his throat as pain exploded behind his eye. He dropped to his knees, curling in on himself, waiting for the next blow. It didn't come, though, and over the ringing in his ears he heard an unfamiliar voice.

"Alright guys that's enough! What the fuck is wrong with you? You're going to _kill_ the guy!" 

When he looked up he saw that the dark haired guy he hadn't recognised was stood in front of him. He couldn't believe that someone was actually defending him, but what was even harder to believe was the way the three guys actually did as he'd said and backed off.

"Fucking fag deserved it." One of them slurred, but they were already moving away. Luke didn't relax until they were out of sight. He took a shaky breath and closed his eyes, or eye, since the one they'd hit was quickly swelling shut.

Once the dizziness had worn off slightly he looked up at the guy who'd stopped them, trying to look grateful.

"Thanks." He choked out. The guy scoffed, glaring at him angrily.

"What the fuck was that?" He asked. Luke frowned, confused.

"Um...I'm sorry. What?"

"How could you just let them do that to you?" The guy asked him, incredulous and furious. Luke shrugged.

"What was I supposed to do? There were three of them. It's not like I could fight them off."

"So? You should at least try! Or at the very least, call for help. But you just _stood_ there and took it! What's wrong with you? Why would anyone just let other people do that to them?" 

Luke was suddenly furious. How dare this guy, who he didn't even _know_ , for fuck's sake, stand there and lecture _him_ for not defending himself?

"You're a fucking hypocrite." Luke seethed. The dark haired guy looked taken aback.

"What?"

"I said, you're a hypocrite. You're yelling at me for letting them beat me up, but I didn't see you trying to stop them." 

"Excuse me? I literally _just_ made them stop!" 

"Yeah, after they'd already beat the shit out of me! Forgive me for not kissing your feet in gratitude!" 

The two glared at each other angrily for a moment or two, but his injuries were too much for Luke and he groaned, screwing his face up in pain. He even felt tears sliding down his face. He'd virtually forgotten about the other boy until he felt a hesitant hand on his shoulder.

"Hey, man, you alright?" The anger was gone, replaced with concern. Luke nodded tightly, but then he whimpered as the pain in his head increased further. "Fuck, man, they've really fucked you up. I'm so sorry, you're absolutely right. I should have stopped them sooner." 

"Nah, man. It's not your job to look after me. I should learn to stand up for myself. I guess I'm just used to letting them get away with it." Luke sighed. 

"You mean this has happened before?"

"No, not this bad. I've never seen any of them outside of school, though. I'm not exactly a social butterfly. The worst they've ever done in school is shoved me into walls, that kind if shit. I shouldn't have come here, it was stupid of me." 

"That's fucking _disgusting_." The guy muttered vehemently. Luke shrugged.

"It is what it is. I'm used to it."

"That's not fair, though. Why the _fuck_ should you have to feel like that? What right do they have to make you feel like you can't go out because if you run into them they'll beat you up? What did you do to deserve that?" 

"I don't know. They've always hated me. I guess it started because I'm not from here. In year seven, when I moved here, they mostly just teased me for my accent and stuff. Everyone did. It's just gotten worse since then, I s'pose." 

"Fuckers." The stranger muttered. Luke raised an eyebrow.

"Aren't you friends with them?" 

"No. I'm new here, actually. Just moved from London, figured I'd come to the party. I thought I'd meet people, make some friends. They seemed like alright guys, until..." He smiled apologetically and Luke smiled back. 

"I think they are, you know. Alright, I mean. They're pretty popular in school, and teachers like them. It's just me, I guess. They don't like me." Luke shrugged. The stranger looked at him disbelievingly.

"How can you say that? Dude, need I remind you that they could have _killed_ you?" 

"Yeah, but that doesn't make them bad people..." Luke murmured. He was slowly losing consciousness, his speech becoming slurred. The stranger noticed this, frowning.

"Yeah, actually, it kind of does," he snorted, but dropped the subject as he realising there were more pressing matters at hand, "Come on, man, look at me. Don't shut your eyes. You need to stay awake. You might have concussion."

"Nah. Just a headache." Luke replied, but his voice was so slurred it came out all jumbled.

"Don't close your eyes!" The guy repeated, reaching out and slapping Luke's cheek, panicking. He regretted it instantly, but surprisingly it worked. Luke instantly looked more alert.

"Shit. That hurt." He looked mad for a second, then half-smiled. "Thanks." 

"S'alright. Think you can stay awake?"

"Yeah, but I don't think I can get up yet." He admitted. The guy just nodded.

"That's okay, take as long as-" he stopped suddenly as the loud music from inside the house suddenly cut off. An eery silence settled over the house, and the guy stood up.

"Where are you going?" Luke asked. 

"I'll be right back, I just want to see what's going on." Was the reply. Luke nodded, focusing on taking deep, even breaths as he waited for the other guy to return. He heard voices from inside, and he strained his ears to hear.

"What the _fuck_ is going on? Jesse, mum's going to kill you!" A guy's voice, Luke noted. Whoever it was sounded furious, and Luke assumed he looked it, too, from the way everybody in the house seemed to be holding their breath. He heard a higher pitched voice then, but it was much softer and he couldn't make it out. There were a few more muffled sounds and then the man's voice was back.

"Alright, party's over. Everyone get the fuck out." 

Luke curled up into a ball, grateful that it was dark out and he wasn't all that visible as teenagers filed out, everyone fighting to get through the crowd. It took at least fifteen minutes for everyone to leave, and Luke panicked briefly when he realised it had been a few minutes since he'd heard someone leave and he was worried that the dark haired guy had left also. He calmed down quickly, though, assuring himself that he didn't even need the guy. He struggled to his feet, using the sides of the decking to support himself, gasping as the pain in his head and stomach doubled. He groaned loudly, regretting his decision. He definitely wasn't okay to even stand without support, let alone walk home. 

"Fuck, man, you okay?" Luke couldn't help but sag with relief at the familiar voice. Obviously, dark-haired boy hadn't left him. Luke had never felt so grateful to anyone.

"You're still here." He choked out. The guy looked at him like he was stupid.

"I told you I was coming back. I wouldn't leave you, man, not in this state."

"Luke." 

"What?"

"Luke. My name's Luke. Not 'man'," Luke wasn't sure why he suddenly felt the need to introduce himself, but he did, "or 'fag'." He added as an afterthought, making the guy laugh dryly.

"Okay. Hi, Luke. I'm Calum."

"Hi, Calum." 

Their eyes met briefly and they both burst out laughing, though Luke quickly stopped when he realised that it made the pain in his stomach intensify. Calum stopped too, looking concerned again.

"Look, Luke, I know it's probably the last thing you want but I really think we should call an ambulance. I doubt they've done any serious damage, but you can't be too sure and you don't want to take the risk." 

Luke shook his head quickly.

"I'm alright, seriously. They were too drunk to hit me that hard. It hurts but it's more of an ache, like I'm going to be bruised in the morning, not like I'm bleeding internally." Luke assured him, but Calum still looked worried.

"Are you sure? You're the first friend I've made here, Luke, and I'll be seriously pissed if you go and die on me." Calum had meant to make him laugh, but Luke's breath caught in his throat at the word _friend_.

"Friend?" He couldn't help asking. He was shocked. He hadn't really had a friend since he left Sydney. Calum smiled, obviously picking up on that, at least to an extent.

"Yeah." He smiled. Luke beamed at him then, wincing as his partially healed split lip tore open again but the smile didn't fall off his face, not even as he felt blood welling up and falling down his chin. Calum grimaced.

"You look like something out of a horror movie, man." He chuckled as he sidled up to the blonde, lifting his arm to droop it around his shoulders. 

"Alright, Luke, you can lean on me as much as you need to. Don't worry about hurting me, I'm a big, strong lad. We need to get you somewhere with better lighting, at least, and try to fix you u-"

"Hey! What the fuck are you doing? I thought I said everyone had to leave!" Came an angry voice. Both boys glanced up to see a tall, young guy stood on the porch, glaring at them angrily. 

"Hey, man, I'm really sorry, but my friend here-"

"I don't give a fuck how drunk he is, get the fuck out of our garden." The guy folded his arms. Calum stiffened, opening his mouth to reply, but Luke cut in.

"It's fine, Calum," he started quietly, then raised his voice to address the guy, "Sorry about this. We were just leaving." He said. He then took a deep breath and started walking. With Calum's help, he managed stay upright and they weren't even moving that slowly. But when they reached the path, which was bathed in light from the doorway, that the angry guy let out a gasp and called after them.

"Wait! Fuck, man, you're _hurt_!" The guy sounded worried and Luke and Calum stopped walking as they heard footsteps approaching them.

"I'm alright." Luke reassured him halfheartedly, but Calum rolled his eyes.

"He's not alright. Some guys beat the crap out of him, he can barely walk. I tried to convince him to let me take him to the hospital but he won't go." 

The older guy frowned, looking Luke over. Up close, Luke couldn't help but notice that this guy was really fucking attractive. He could barely make out his facial features in the dim light but he could see enough. Luke blushed under his gaze, looking down at the ground in embarrassment. 

"M'fine. Just want to go to bed." He mumbled. Calum sighed, relenting, but the older guy shook his head sternly.

"There's no way I'm letting you go anywhere looking like that. If you won't let me call an ambulance, at least let me take you inside and clean you up. Don't look at me like that," he narrowed his eyes at Luke, who had been about to protest, and turned to Calum, "Help me get him inside?"

Calum nodded and suddenly the attractive guy was at Luke's other side, holding him up with a strong arm around his waist and Luke's face flushed even harder, until they started moving and the pain distracted him from the embarrassment.

They managed to get him up the steps and into the house, where the older guy paused momentarily. 

"Alright, let's get him to the kitchen where we can clean him up." He instructed, and Calum nodded. Once there, they managed to manoeuvre Luke so that he was perched on the counter in the least painful position possible. Calum rubbed his shoulder soothingly while the other guy searched his cupboards for something. 

"Okay, so how much did you have to drink tonight?" The older guy turned to them, expression stern. Calum met his gaze, refusing to look guilty. 

"I had a beer. _One_ beer." He told him, and the guy nodded, believing him. 

"Alright. How about your friend here? What did he do to end up like this?" 

"I'm not dead, you know. I can still speak." Luke muttered sourly. Calum chuckled, and the other guy looked surprised.

"Right, sorry. I thought you were drunk."

"I only had, like, three beers. I'm not a big drinker. I was actually on my way home, but then, well, shit happened, I guess." He shrugged, yawning. Calum snorted again.

"Shit happened. Luke, that's the fucking understatement of the century." Calum growled. Luke rolled his eyes again.

"You're being melodramatic, Calum. It was just a few punches."

"I thought they were going to _kill_ you!"

"They wouldn't have-ow, fuck!" Luke gasped and jerked backwards as the other guy, who he'd managed to almost forget about, pressed a cold cloth to his split lip. He swiped his tongue over the injury to soothe it.

"Sorry, man, but there's blood all over your face. I need to clean it up a bit before I can see how bad they've really messed you up. I'm Ashton, by the way." He introduced himself with a small, sympathetic smile as Luke grit his teeth and motioned for him to continue. 

"Luke." He replied, wincing as the cold touched his skin. 

"Calum." His friend joined in. Ashton glanced at him briefly to nod and smile, acknowledging that he'd heard, before turning back to Luke. It was silent for a few minutes as Ashton cleaned up Luke's face, except for Luke's soft groans every time Ashton brushed over a tender spot, which was often. The skin around his left eye was sore to the touch and it was swollen so much he could barely see out of it. His nose had been bleeding, though he was unaware, and the blood had been smeared across his right cheek. It was dried, so Ashton had to exert a little pressure to wipe it off, but Luke had received two or three blows to his right side and he had to bite his lip to prevent himself from crying out in pain. Ashton looked guilty, but didn't stop.

Eventually Ashton pulled away, seemingly satisfied with the state of Luke's face. Calum sighed, sounding relieved.

"You look a lot better, Luke. You're gonna have a fucking _awful_ black eye, though." He ruffled Luke's hair, and Luke realised that the quiff he'd worked on for so long before he left the house had fallen flat. Unsurprising, really. Still, he reached up a hand to at least _try_ to fix it, but groaned and dropped his arm as the movement sent a dull throbbing feeling through his sore stomach. Ashton frowned in concern, and before Luke knew what was happening he'd yanked up his shirt and gasped again.

"Fuck! This isn't good, Luke! You're all bruised, there could be internal bleeding!" Ashton half-shouted. Luke shook his head.

"It wasn't that hard. Don't worry, it's fine. Honestly, just bruised."

"You can't know that for certain."

"I've had internal bleeding before. I was hit by a car, when I was nine. This doesn't feel anything like that." 

"You really should get it checked, just in case."

"I'm not going to the fucking hospital. If I do, my parents will be called and they'll want to know what happened and I'm _not_ telling them about this," he turned to Calum, knowing he'd know what he was talking about, "I told them it was better. They think it's okay, they'll be heartbroken if they know it's got worse." 

"Alright. I get it." Calum nodded. Ashton looked between the two of them, confused.

"What?" He asked. Luke shook his head, like it was nothing, but Calum launched into a brief but somehow rather detailed summary of what Luke had told him earlier. Ashton looked shocked.

"Fucking assholes. You'd think that, being sixteen year olds, they'd be a little more mature." Was Ashton's response. Luke shrugged, yawning.

"Yeah, guess not. Look, thanks for all your help Ashton, but I should get home, my parents will-" he stopped talking and his eyes widened as a figure stumbled into the kitchen.

"Ash, I found this guy asleep in the bathtub and he won't listen to me. Can you tell him to lea-what the fuck is going on?" Jesse Bell followed the stumbling figure into the kitchen, eyes narrowing as she took in the sight before her. Luke's face burned and he yanked down his crumpled shirt.

"Jess, he's so wasted he can barely _stand_. How hard can it be to shove him out the door?" Ashton groaned. Jesse ignored him.

"What the fuck are you doing in my house, Hemmings?" She glowered. Ashton looked confused for a second, but then he seemed to understand what was happening. Luke didn't pay him, or Jesse, any attention, however, since he was staring like a deer caught in headlights at the green-haired guy who was looking around dazedly, blinking like the light hurt his eyes. Clifford's gaze finally settled on him, and his expression changed. Luke was surprised that, rather than the anger he'd expected, the boy looked shocked.

"The fuck happened, fag?" He slurred, but there was no venom in his voice. Luke couldn't reply, he was too surprised because Michael Clifford actually looked _concerned_ , though it was most likely just a trick of the lights, or the alcohol or something. 

"Don't fucking call him that, you asshole." Calum growled, looking about ready to launch himself at Michael. Clifford looked at him, surprised, and then something seemed to dawn on him.

"You were with Nathan and the twins, weren't you? Wait, _fuck_ , did they do this?" Clifford looked steadier now, as if the surprise had sobered him up. Luke snorted, glaring at him. 

"Don't sound so surprised. You fucking sent them, didn't you?" 

"What? I might have mentioned you'd been about but I didn't tell them to look for you, and I certainly didn't tell them to do _this_!" He looked appalled. Luke was taken aback. 

"Why do you sound so shocked?" 

"Because I never...fuck, man. This was never meant to go this far." 

Luke couldn't bring himself to reply, he was too floored by Clifford's words. He actually sounded honest, despite his words being slurred.

"Alright, green-hair, time for you to go." Ashton broke in suddenly, voice cold. Clifford looked at him, almost like he was surprised to see him there, as if he hadn't been there all along.

"Yeah, right. Sorry, Luke." He said finally, looking Luke right in the eye, before turning around and heading out of the kitchen. 

"Jesse, make sure finds his way out. Call him a cab if he doesn't live close by." Ashton instructed her. She nodded, shooting Luke another look, but this time it was worried rather than angry.

"Hey, Hem-Luke. You alright?" She asked. Luke just nodded, dazed. First Clifford apologised, and then Jesse Bell, of all people, was asking how he was. He watched her as she smiled slightly and then followed Clifford out of the room. 

"Calum, are you sure they didn't _actually_ kill me? Because I'm pretty sure I must be dead because there's no way that actually just happened." 

"I could pinch you, if that would help." Calum offered, shrugging. Luke laughed, shaking his head.

"I'll take my chances, thanks." 

"Okay, come on Luke. You should eat something. I'll get you some water and a sandwich." Ashton smiled at him, patting his shoulder. Luke smiled back, grateful that he managed to fight the blush threatening to reappear on his cheeks.

"Thanks. I, um, I really should call my parents, though. Could I borrow a phone?" 

Calum quickly pulled his phone from his back pocket and handed it to Luke. Luke smiled gratefully and dialled his home number.

"Hello?" Came his mother's voice, slightly frantic. 

"Hey, mom, it's me."

"Oh, thank God. We were so worried, Luke. You should have called earlier!"

"Sorry, mom. I guess I just lost track of time."

"Was the party fun?" 

"Yeah, mom, it was great. I really enjoyed myself." Luke fought to keep his voice steady, made harder by the faces that both Calum and Ashton pulled at the lie.

"Good, I'm glad. Will you be home soon?" 

"Yeah, I think so. I'll try to get back within an hour or so, if that's-" 

Ashton suddenly pulled the phone out of Luke's grasp and held it to his own ear. Luke's eyes widened.

"Hi, Mrs Hemmings. I'm Ashton, Luke's friend. Luke didn't want to admit it, but he's had a little too much to drink, and I think it would be best if he stayed with me for the night, if that's alright?" 

Luke looked at Calum, heart speeding up. His friend just shrugged, obviously not too bothered by what was going on. Luke was freaking out, though. He couldn't stay the night! He'd only just met Ashton and the guy was really hot and Luke really didn't want to embarrass himself any more than he already had. Luke looked back at Ashton, frantically shaking his head, but Ashton ignored him and turned around.

"Thanks, Mrs Hemmings. Yeah, he is. I'll tell him, yeah. Tomorrow morning, yes. I'll drop him off myself. Thank you." Ashton finished, then hung up the phone. He handed it to Calum, smirking at Luke.

"Your mom says you're an idiot. And that she loves you." He told him. Luke's cheeks heated up and he scowled.

"What did you do that for? I can't stay the night!"

"Why not? You're hurt, you're not walking home, and my mum has my car until morning. Therefore you, my friend, are stuck."

"I, um...I don't want to be an inconvenience. Seriously, I'm alright, I can walk home." Luke insisted, hopping off the counter. He winced, and Ashton laughed.

"No you can't. Come on, come sit on the couch. I'll grab you a drink and some painkillers." Ashton was already leading him into the lounge, and Luke followed with a sigh. As awkward as he felt, Ashton was right. He couldn't walk home. Plus if his parents saw him looking like he did, they'd start asking questions.

Ashton made him sit down and turned on the television before disappearing, reappearing a moment later with a glass of water, a box of painkillers and Calum.

"Hey, Luke, you gonna be alright? My mom just texted me, she needs to rush into work and she's been babysitting my cousin, so I need to get back to look after her." 

Luke really didn't want Calum to leave, but he nodded anyway. He couldn't exactly ask Calum to put him before his cousin, and he had no real reason to want the boy to stay. 

"Yeah, I'm alright. I guess I'll, um, see you around?" Luke's voice was questioning. He was unsure where they stood, as friends. Calum slapped his shoulder and grinned at him.

"You got a phone, Luke?" He asked. Luke nodded, smiling.

"Yeah, but I left it at home. Didn't want to risk losing it."

"Do you know your number?" When Luke nodded, Calum handed him his own phone and Luke hurriedly typed it in, checking it twice to make sure he'd got it right. He saved the contact and handed Calum his mobile. "Thanks, man. I'll call you tomorrow to make sure you're alright." 

Ashton smiled and said goodbye to Calum, before handing Luke the water and tablets.

"Alright, Luke, take two of these and give it twenty minutes. You should feel a little better then. I'm sorry, I know you're probably exhausted, but you can't go to sleep at the moment. You might be concussed and I don't want you slipping into a coma." Ashton sat down on the couch beside Luke and Luke gulped, his palms starting to sweat. He scolded himself for being such an idiot. Sure, Ashton was attractive, but he'd only just met him and if he didn't stop being such a child he was going to humiliate himself.

"Thanks, man. I owe you one." Luke said through a yawn. Ashton beamed and Luke fought a groan because the guy had _dimples_ and stupid eyes and he had to look away. Now that they were alone, Luke couldn't help but think about the guys more. He had light brown curly hair that Luke couldn't help but be jealous of. He had a bandana around his head, which Luke found endearing. He'd never seen anyone wearing a bandana in real life before but it looked good, made him wish he could pull one off. 

"So, Luke. What's your story?" Ashton broke the silence after a minute. Luke laughed and rose an eyebrow.

"Really? I'm pretty sure that's the lamest conversation starter I've ever heard." 

"Hey! At least I'm trying!" Ashton pouted. Luke averted his eyes, not wanting to look at the other boy's face. He took in the clothes he was wearing, black skinny jeans like Luke's own, and a white shirt with some colourful print on the front. Ashton shifted and Luke's face lit up as the shirt straightened out enough so he could make it out.

"You're wearing a blink shirt!" He gasped, grinning at the other boy. Ashton looked amused.

"Really? I had no idea." He deadpanned. Luke huffed.

"No need to be sarcastic. I love Blink 182." 

"So do I." Ashton smiled, and met Luke's eye. Luke blushed and looked away, fidgeting.

"So, um...I don't mean to sound rude, but who are you?" Luke blurted, certain that if he blushed any more tonight his face would literally catch fire. Ashton laughed.

"Right, sorry. I forgot that you actually have no idea who I am. I'm Ashton Irwin," he smiled, holding out his hand. Luke looked at it blankly before realising he was supposed to shake it, "I live here. Jesse is my sister."

"But her name is Bell." Luke looked confused.

"Yeah, I'm adopted. The Bell's were told that they couldn't have any children, so they adopted me when I was a couple months old. Then, just over a year later, Sabine fell pregnant with Jesse. It was tricky, and she was told all along that the chances of Jesse surviving were slim, and even if she did make it there was a 98% chance that she would be disabled, both physically and mentally. Still, Jesse was born, a little premature but otherwise she was fine." Ashton smiled as he told the story, and Luke could tell from his voice that Ashton really loved his sister.

"That's amazing. So you've lived here all your life?" Luke asked, wondering why he'd never seen Ashton before. Fair enough, he didn't get out much, but surely he would have seen him around school? Granway's wasn't that big, and Ashton didn't have a forgettable face.

"Yeah, I have." 

"Oh. I've never seen you around." Luke looked embarrassed, but Ashton quickly reassured him.

"Don't feel bad. I never went to Granway's, so that's probably why. My parents sent me to this super posh boarding school near London. Jesse went there too, but she never liked it and when Granway's started taking girls she moved there." 

"Oh, I see. Are you still in school?" 

"Nah, I finished last year. I'm nineteen, twenty in a couple months." 

"Oh, cool. So do you work?" Luke asked, intrigued. Ashton was an interesting guy, though his eagerness to hear him talk probably seemed a little weird. Still, the older boy seemed happy to oblige.

"Yeah, I'm a bartender, and sometimes I perform at clubs and stuff." He admitted, looking slightly embarrassed. Luke's eyes widened. 

"Perform? As in..."

"I sing and play guitar. I'm not great, though. I prefer to play the drums, but that's not what people want to see." He shrugged. Luke smiled.

"I play guitar too." Luke told him. Ashton's face lit up.

"You do? That's awesome! Do you have lessons?"

"I did, back in Sydney. Me and my friend Sean took lessons together. But since we moved here I've mostly just learnt from YouTube videos and stuff." He was a little embarrassed, but Ashton looked impressed.

"That's so cool. Speaking of cool, this might sound a little creepy, but I love your voice. I don't understand why people make fun of you for being Australian. You have the best accent!" Ashton looked genuine and Luke looked down, smiling. Nobody had ever said anything like that before. It was nice to hear.

"Thanks. I, um, I like your accent too." 

"What's Australia like?" Ashton asked him then, and Luke was relieved. This was something he could do. Talking about his life in Sydney was easy for him, though it made him nostalgic and wish he were back there.

Luke talked for what felt like hours about his old home. He told Ashton about his old friends, school, town. He talked about his family and what he did at the weekend. He told him about how the weather was always nice, about how great Summers were and how nice it was to spend Christmas on the beach. Luke lost track of time as he spoke, but Ashton didn't seem to mind, watching Luke with a riveted expression the whole way through. Eventually, they moved on to the topic of Luke's move to England, and before he knew it he was being bombarded with questions about the bullying, about who was the worst, what they'd done, why he didn't tell someone. Luke felt uncomfortable talking about it, but he answered Ashton nonetheless. Nobody had ever cared this much, and it felt good to get it all out.

"Why do they call you 'fag'?" Ashton asked eventually, after a few minutes of silence. Luke looked surprised at the question. He'd figured it was obvious. 

"Because I'm gay, I guess." He shrugged. He tried not to be embarrassed when Ashton looked at him sharply, obviously not expecting that answer.

"What?" The older boy said, then shook his head, 'Sorry, I didn't mean that. I was just surprised."

"It's okay. I'm surprised you asked, though. I figured it was obvious. Why else would they call me that?"

"Well, it's just, like...how do they know?"

"What do you mean?"

"How do people know you're gay? Did you tell everyone?"

"Well, no, but-"

"See, that's why I asked. They don't actually _know_ , Luke. Maybe people suspect, but the reality is that they call you that because they think it will hurt you. They think it's offensive."

"So? Does the reason really matter? I don't let it bother me." 

"Yeah, it does matter!" Ashton looked angry, obviously passionate about the subject, "People throw that word around like it's some kind of terrible insult, like people should be upset if they're called it because it's _bad_. I hate that. God, I really hate that people think being gay is such a terrible thing." 

"Hey, it's alright," Luke could see tears forming in Ashton's eyes and he didn't understand why he was getting so worked up but he really didn't want to see the guy cry, "you get used to it. I mean, it hurts I guess, but I don't let it bother me. Who cares what they think? I don't give a shit if Michael Clifford thinks my sexuality is disgusting, because I never want to be in a relationship with Michael Clifford. I mean, if Calum had a problem with it, I'd care because he's my friend. But, like, nobody else matters." 

"I admire you for being able to think like that. Not a lot of people can see it that way. But what if...what happens when it's someone that matters?" Ashton was really crying now and Luke still didn't understand why.

"I don't know. It's never happened to me."

"You're lucky. It sucks, you know. Hearing my little sister call a guy a 'faggot' was the most painful thing that's ever happened to me." Ashton said quietly and Luke froze, realisation dawning. Ashton was _gay_. That's why he was so passionate about this. Luke felt like hitting his head against a wall for not realising sooner. 

"Shit, Ashton. I'm so sorry." 

"Don't be. It's not your fault." He shrugged, wiping his eyes. He looked embarrassed. 

"It doesn't mean she's homophobic, you know." Luke said after a minute or so of silence. Ashton looked up, confused.

"What? Of course it does."

"Nah. It doesn't. It's just a word, Ashton. She uses it because everyone else uses it. I'd be willing to bet that if you told her you're, you know...if you told her, she'd be okay with it. You're her brother." 

"I hope you're right." Ashton sighed, saying nothing more. Luke got the hint, he didn't want to talk about it any more, and dropped the subject. Ashton checked his watch and yawned.

"God, it's almost five." 

"In the morning?" Luke gasped, shocked. Ashton nodded.

"Yeah. I'd say it's been long enough now, you should be alright to go to sleep. Come on, I'll show you to the guest room." 

Despite the time, and the heaviness of his eyelids, Luke struggled to fall asleep. He refused to believe that it had anything to do with Ashton being just down the hall. ("If you need anything, my room is the last one on the right. Don't be afraid to wake me up." He'd said. Luke had simply nodded, trying not to think about what the older guy wore, or didn't wear, to bed.)

...

He felt like he'd only been asleep a few minutes when he felt the hand on his shoulder shaking him awake. 

"Luke, c'mon. You need to wake up." Ashton's voice was close to his ear and he shivered slightly, slowly opening his eyes.

"My eye hurts." Was the first thing he said, because it was true. His left eye and the surrounding area was aching dully and he felt a sharp pain in his lip, too, when he spoke. Ashton looked sympathetic.

"You look like shit, man." Ashton informed him. 

"Thanks." Came the sarcastic reply, but it was muffled because Luke had rolled over and buried his face in the pillow. Ashton laughed.

"Come on, Luke, get up!"

"Can't. Injured." Luke mumbled. Ashton rolled his eyes and grabbed the bottom of the duvet covering Luke, hastily pulling it all the way off before Luke could react. Luke groaned, turning over and sitting up so he could narrow his eyes at Ashton.

"I hate you." He grumbled. Ashton laughed. 

"You can't have been that comfortable. You're still wearing jeans." He pointed out. Luke looked down at himself, surprised, though he didn't know why. He was, in fact, still fully dressed, but his blue shirt was stained with blood.

"Ew, gross." He made a face. Ashton laughed.

"Come on. I'll show you how to use the shower, and you can borrow one of my shirts. I don't have any jeans that will fit you since you're some kind of giant but I think your jeans are still clean." Ashton smiled, offering a hand. Luke took it gratefully and let himself be pulled to his feet. 

"I'm not a giant. I'm not even that tall. Everyone else is just short." He retorted, but Ashton had it a sore spot. His height had become a problem for him, since not only did it attract even more name-calling but it also made blending in a problem. Ashton realised he'd touched on a nerve because he frowned, rubbing Luke's upper arm.

"Hey, cheer up. Being tall is a good thing."

"Yeah, yeah." Luke returned unconvincingly. Ashton sighed, dropping the subject, and his hand. 

"Alright, bathroom's this way. I'll grab you a towel, and you can use my shampoo." He dragged him out of the room and pointed him towards a door with a little boat plaque on the front. Luke thanked him and walked in, relieved to be able to strip off his stained shirt and drop it into the bin in the corner. Ashton came back after a moment, holding a red towel. He quickly showed Luke how to work the shower and then stepped out.

"There's no rush, but it's half ten and I told your mom you'd be back in the morning, so you might want to give her a ring if we're going to be long." 

"It's fine, my parents both work all day. They won't be back until tonight." Luke replied, voice raised so that he could be heard through the closed door. 

Once he was under the stream of hot water Luke felt the tension leave his body. He leant back against the wall, sighing. The heat was soothing to his aching muscles. He found a men's shampoo which he assumed was Ashton's and washed his hair quickly. Once he was done, he braved a look at his stomach.

It was bad. There was a large, ugly purple bruise forming under his ribs on the right side and a peppering of smaller bruises across the rest of his abdomen. They looked a lot worse than they felt, but his stomach was tender and he hissed loudly as he somehow managed to elbow himself as he was towelling off. 

He slipped his underwear and jeans back on, but then realised that Ashton hadn't given him a shirt to borrow. Silently, not wanting to wake up Jesse or their parents (if they were home), he left the bathroom, sliding the door shut softly behind him. 

"So you're the reason my idiot brother just woke me up to use my toilet." He jumped at Jesse's voice, whirling around to see her stood behind him, a little down the hall, arms crossed and eyebrow raised. He blushed, not meeting her eye.

"Sorry, Jesse. I get that you're angry, I was going to go home but Ashton-"

"You look an absolute mess, Luke." She cut him off, her expression pitying. He shrugged, smiling wryly. "Don't apologise. I'm the one who should be sorry. You've never done anything to anyone and I've just stood by all these years and watched people bully you." She looked like she felt terrible, so Luke tried to reassure her.

"There was nothing you could have done. Everyone was the same."

"That doesn't make it okay. I could have been nice to you, tried to be your friend. Instead I just watched, and laughed. I sometimes even joined in, called you names. I don't even know _why_. I never thought...I can't believe they went that far, though." She shook her head. Luke shrugged.

"I guess it was just a matter of time. I'm alright though, really. I'll try to avoid social gatherings in the future. Plus, something good has come out of last night. I've actually got a _friend_ , if you can believe it." He was joking, trying to make light of the situation, but Jesse nodded.

"That guy you were with, right? Caleb?"

"Calum." He corrected her. She smiled.

"He seemed nice. I'm glad you're friends with him. And I, um...I'd like to think we can be friends? If you want, of course. I get it if you can't forgive me, but I just thought...you're a nice guy, Luke. I'd like to know you better." She shrugged nervously. Luke laughed, nodding. He saw Ashton walk into the hall, a little behind, Jesse, but she hadn't noticed. Luke decided to take advantage of the situation, try to put Ashton's mind at rest.

"There's nothing to forgive. But there is one thing you should know. I'm _actually_ gay, Jesse. It's not just a name people call me, it's who I am. And I know you might have a problem with that, but even if you don't, I also know you've used the word 'fag' in the past and I can't be friends with someone that says shit like that." He met Ashton's eye briefly, noticed the older boy stiffen, nodding in thanks. At least now he'd see how his sister really felt about the matter. He looked back at Jesse then, who was smiling, and he sagged with relief. He would have hated to see Ashton's heart break if she'd reacted badly. What she did say, however, came as a shock to both of them.

"Of course I don't have a problem with that. My brother is gay too, and that doesn't bother me." 

Luke's eyes widened and he looked over at Ashton, who's expression mirrored his. Jesse noticed and turned around to face Ashton. 

"Eavesdrop much?" She said to him. Ashton ignored her.

"You _know_?" He gasped out. She laughed.

"Ashy, I've always known. You're, like, the gayest person I've ever met." She replied, as if it were obvious, though Luke couldn't help but disagree. From what he'd seen of him, Ashton was one of the least gay people he'd ever met. That's why he'd been so shocked when he told him the night before.

"Fuck, Jess! I've been freaking out over how you'd react for, like, two years! Couldn't you have let me know that you were already aware?" 

"I figured you'd tell me in your own time, when you were ready."

"I was worried you would hate me."

"You're such an idiot." She walked over to him and wrapped him in a tight hug, which he returned. Luke looked away, not wanting to intrude on their moment. They pulled apart after a moment and Ashton ruffled Jesse's hair.

"Alright, come on Luke. Let's find you a shirt. You might play for the wrong team but I still don't feel comfortable letting my sister hang around with half naked boys." He winked. Luke blushed and Jesse slapped his arm. 

"Shut up, Ash. You're an idiot. And I think it's _me_ that should be worried. If you think I'm leaving poor Luke alone with you, you can forget it." She laughed when her brother flushed slightly and stumbled over his words.

"I think I can restrain myself, thank you very much. Make yourself useful and go make us some pancakes." He muttered. Jesse laughed but nodded.

"Okay. You like pancakes, Luke?" She addressed the younger boy. He nodded, smiling, despite the blush still colouring his cheeks. 

"Yeah, thank you. I can come help, if you want." He offered, not wanting to be a burden. She just shook her head.

"Don't worry, I'm a pancake expert. Go get dressed." She smiled. He smiled back gratefully and started down the hallway towards Ashton. Until then he'd been holding the towel up so that it just about covered his abdomen, hiding the nasty bruises. When he moved, though, he moved the towel and both Jesse and Ashton gasped.

"Fuck! Your _tummy_!" Jesse burst out, shellshocked. Luke looked down sheepishly, quickly moving the towel back up to conceal the bruises.

"It's nothing. Doesn't even hurt. I just bruise easily." He assured her, darting past her towards Ashton. She looked at him worriedly but nodded and left, heading downstairs. Ashton went back into his bedroom and Luke followed, watched as Ashton shut the door behind him and turned around. 

"Okay, drop the towel." Ashton instructed him sternly. Luke shook his head.

"It's fine, really. Can I please just have a shirt?" He pleaded, but Ashton wasn't letting it go.

"No, Luke. Let me look." 

Luke sighed but finally did as he was told, hanging the towel on the back of a chair and turning back to face Ashton, who stepped forward. Luke but back a gasp when he suddenly stepped closer and put a hand either side of Luke's waist, studying the bruises with his brow furrowed. When Ashton's thumb started swiping back and forwards, almost automatically, like Ashton wasn't even conscious that he was doing it, Luke felt his entire body heating up and he had to step away.

"See, it's fine." He breathed out. Ashton nodded, looking thoughtful.

"Yeah, okay. They look a awful, but you're right, they're mostly just superficial. You're really thin, though, Luke. Is that, like, anything to do with the bullying?" He asked, voice soft. Luke shook his head quickly. 

"No, not at all. I eat like a pig, don't worry. I just have a fast metabolism." He assured him, and it was the truth. He'd never had a problem with eating in his life. Ashton seemed to believe him because he looked relieved and he dropped it. 

"Okay, good," he started rooting around in a drawer and after a moment or two he pulled out a black shirt, smiling, "Found it! Here, wear this one. It's appropriate." He threw the balled up fabric at Luke and Luke could have sworn that his cheeks reddened slightly but he'd walked out of the room too quickly for him to be sure. 

"Thanks!" Luke called after him, shaking out the shirt. When he read the slogan on the front he blushed. The words _Hot_ _Mess_ were emblazoned across the front in scrawly white lettering. The shirt was nothing like what Luke usually wore, one of those tank tops with arm holes that went right down to the waist. Luke had always thought it was strange, wearing such a revealing shirt, figured you might as well not wear one at all. (He'd also secretly thought they were really cool but he knew he'd never pull one off.)

He made his way downstairs, following the smell of pancake batter and tugging self consciously on the shirt, knowing he must look like an idiot. When he walked in the kitchen, though, Ashton smiled.

"Looks good on you." He said, winking. Luke was pretty sure he would have melted if he weren't, like, you know, a person. 

Jesse was busy pouring pancake batter into the pan, but when she turned around she did a double take.

"Whoa, Luke. You look...different." She finally settled on the word, but Luke got the feeling it wasn't exactly what she meant.

"You've only ever seen me in school uniform. Of course I do." 

"No, but...I don't know. You look like you could be in a band or something. Like a rock star. You should dress like that more often." She smiled, and Luke thought she looked impressed. Ashton huffed, pouting.

"You've never said that I look like a rock star. And he's wearing my clothes!" 

"Shirt. I'm wearing your shirt." Luke corrected him, trying not to think about how intimate it seemed, wearing someone else's clothes. 

"It looks better on him." Jesse shrugged, turning back to the pancake. Ashton seethed, glaring at Luke, who just shrugged. He couldn't help but smirk a little, though, which only made Ashton angrier.

"She's right though, Luke." Ashton said after a long pause. Luke was staring hungrily at the pancake Jesse was sliding onto his plate.

"Who's right?" He asked. 

"You do look like a rock star. You should pierce your eyebrow or something, maybe get a few tattoos, then go start a punk rock band." 

Luke looked up at him, eyebrow raised, trying not to choke on his mouthful of pancake. 

"There are so many things wrong with that suggestion." He finally replied once he'd swallowed his food. 

"Like what?"

"Well, for one, needles scare me. Like, hide-under-the-nurses-table when it's flu-jab season scare me." 

"Technicality." Ashton shrugged.

"Secondly, I can't sing. And I'm a mediocre guitar player." 

"Yeah, but you've already got a mediocre drummer. Everybody loves a mediocre punk rock band!" Ashton insisted. Luke laughed, shaking his head.

"I want to be a teacher, not a singer." 

"You could do both." 

"No I couldn't!"

"You so could. What's stopping you?" 

"Could you really imagine that? Think about it. Alex Gaskarth teaching English to year five's." Luke chuckled at the mental image. Ashton snorted.

"And Jack could teach French. 'Bonjour Monsieur Barakat'." Ashton giggled. 

"'Today we're going to learn how to say 'fuck it, it's punk' in French, kids.'" Luke added. They both bent over double, laughing loudly. Jesse rolled her eyes. She had no idea what they were talking about.

"I can't believe it. Ashton, you've actually found someone as weird as you are." 

"It is not _weird_ to like All Time Low! And even _you_ said you'd sleep with Jack Barakat!" Ashton looked offended. Jesse nodded, conceding.

"Alright, fair enough." 

"Who _wouldn't_ sleep with Jack?" Luke smiled wryly. Then he realised what he'd said and flushed. Ashton and Jesse laughed at his embarrassment.

"Don't be embarrassed, Luke. I'd sleep with him too." Ashton said, winking. Luke smiled, but he decided to stop talking and eat his pancakes before he embarrassed himself any further.

...

Luke managed to convince his parents that his black eye was a result of an accident with a tennis ball and the rest of his face was mostly healed by the time he actually saw them, due to their hectic work schedules and his impressive avoiding skills. They didn't have to know about the bruises to his stomach, which were disappearing pretty fast anyway.

It was almost a week after the incident that Luke saw Ashton again. School had been good, Clifford hadn't been near him, which Luke assumed was related to his reaction in the kitchen after the party, and the guys who beat him up looked positively _shameful_ the few times he'd made eye contact. He was still ignored by most people, but suddenly Jesse was smiling at him and saying hi when they saw each other in the halls and then there was Calum. 

Calum had, true to his word, called to find out how Luke was the next day. After promising he was fine, Luke agreed to meet him the next day at the cinema and in the week since the party they'd become close and Luke found himself enjoying school now that he wasn't completely alone. 

After school on the Friday after the party, Luke was walking out if the gates alongside Calum when he saw Ashton. He was leaning against a red car, speaking to Jesse and Niamh Smith, who was flirting in a very non-subtle manner. Luke smirked to himself, feeling smug knowing that, no matter how much she batted her eyelids and tossed her hair, Ashton would never go for her unless she suddenly grew a penis and her tits fell off. 

Luke and Ashton had exchanged a few text messages and spoken over the phone a couple times but Ashton had been working all week so Luke hadn't seen him since the day after the party. (This fact bothered Luke far more than it should have.)

"Hey, Luke, isn't that the guy from the party? The one who helped you out?" Calum pointed in their direction. Luke nodded.

"Yeah, that's Ashton."

"Why don't you go over there?" 

"I, um..." As much as he wanted to, there was no way he could do that. There was far too much possibility of him being humiliated. "He won't want me to. He's just here to pick Jesse up, probably." 

"Luke, don't be-" Calum was cut off mid-sentence by none other than Ashton himself. Luke's heart may or may not have stopped beating.

"Luke! Hey, Luke, come here!" 

The two boys whirled around to face a grinning Ashton, already peeling away from the small gaggle of girls that had formed around him and making his way towards them.

"Um..." Luke struggled to form words. Calum elbowed him sharply, making him gasp but successfully regain his ability to speak. "Hey, Ashton."

"I've been waiting for you for, like, twenty minutes and I almost missed you, mate. How are you doing?" Ashton beamed at him, surprising them both when he wrapped his arms around the blonde and hugged him tightly. Luke's eyes widened and he choked a little. Ashton mistook this for signs of discomfort and pulled away, blushing. "Sorry, I forget, not everyone likes a hug." 

Luke shook his head, smiling.

"It's fine, mate, I'm good. I was just surprised." He shrugged. They smiled at each other for a moment or so, neither making a move to speak, until Calum cleared his throat loudly.

"Um, guys?"

"Sorry!" Ashton burst out, turning to face Calum. "You're Luke's friend, the one from the party, right?" 

"Yeah, that's me. The name's Calum." 

"Hi, Calum. Do you want to come along?" 

"Come along where, exactly?" 

Ashton suddenly laughed loudly, shaking his head. "Right, sorry, I haven't actually mentioned that yet, have I? Sorry, I'm being so awkward." 

Luke laughed at him, looking away momentarily to see if Jesse was still around. He flushed bright red when he saw that there were students all over the car park staring at the three of them, shock and confusion on most faces. He caught Jesse's eye and she grinned at him.

"Um, Ashton? There are people, like...um, people are staring at us. Can we, like, go somewhere? Somewhere not here?" Luke stammered. Ashton looked around, puzzled. 

"I don't know why they're staring, but of course. I came here to get you, actually. I've got the night off and I wondered if you wanted to hang out at my place?" He asked, smiling. Luke beamed, surprised but pleased by the invitation. He nodded enthusiastically. 

"That sounds really great!" 

"Good. Calum? Are you in?" Ashton turned to the dark haired boy, who frowned.

"I don't particularly want to be a third wheel, so I might have to sit this one out. Thanks, though." Calum said politely. Luke blushed and looked at his feet and Ashton's eyes widened.

"No, no, you wouldn't be...it's not a date. Right Luke?" He looked over at the younger boy, who nodded, forcing a laugh, "Jesse will be there too."

"Where will Jesse be?" Jesse looked suspicious as she sidled up next to Ashton, who smiled down at her. 

"At home, with us. Tonight."

"Oh, yeah. You're coming, right Luke? I hired this freaky movie about huge spiders specifically for you!"

"What? Why?" Luke frowned, wondering if he'd said something to make her think he wanted to watch such a thing, "I hate spiders. They creep me out." 

"Aw, Lukey, we have to watch it. I was planning some really great jokes about your legs!" She pouted. Luke looked even more confused, while Calum bent over double, laughing loudly.

"What? I don't get it."

"Luke, she's saying your legs look like spider legs." Ashton informed him. Luke looked down at his legs, offended. 

"Hey! No they don't!" He glared at Jesse. She laughed, rolling her eyes. 

"I know. But I thought up some really funny jokes. Can we please watch it?"

"Whatever, I don't mind what we watch." Luke shrugged, not wanting to let on that he was scared of watching some stupid movie. Jesse squealed excitedly and threw herself at Luke, hugging him tightly.

"Thank you Lukey." She spoke right next to his ear, loudly enough that he winced, but still huffed her back. 

"No problem, Jesse. Come on then, can we get going? People are looking at us." Luke was becoming increasingly aware of the many pairs of eyes watching them and he felt self-conscious. 

"Yeah, come on Jess. Calum, you in?" Ashton was already heading back towards the red can't he was stood by earlier. Luke shot Calum a pleading look and he shrugged.

"What the hell? Sure, I'll come." He smiled and Luke grinned, following Ashton to the car.

...

Luke was worried that Calum might not get on with Ashton or Jesse now that everyone was sober and there were no serious injuries to tend, but by the time they pressed play on their third movie of the night, _Love_ _Actually_ (Jesse insisted, and Luke voted yes since he'd never seen it, despite Ashton's futile attempts to convince them that it was not appropriate to watch a Christmas movie in _October_ , damnit.)

They fell asleep half way through, stomachs full (Ashton was wrong, three large pizzas and a side of fries and onion rings and garlic bread was plenty to feed all of them), Ashton and Luke either end of the couch, Calum on the floor and Jesse curled up in an armchair. Luke, as it turned out, was a blanket hogger, which was awkward because so was Ashton, and after playing sleep-tug-of-war with the flimsy cover for half the night, Luke woke up.

"Ashton!" He hissed, shaking the other boy's shoulder. 

"What, Luke?" Came the muffled reply. Ashton didn't even open his eyes.

"Ashton, I'm cold and you're hogging the blanket."

"Lie next to me then." 

"I, um...I won't fit." Luke replied, face flushing. It was true, he wouldn't, it wasn't a big couch, but that wasn't why he was blushing. He decided to pretend that it was.

"You're so annoying, Lucas. I was dreaming." Ashton groaned, blinking rapidly as he slowly came to. Luke smiled goofily at him.

"I'm the guest, though. So therefore it's your job, as host, to put my needs before your own." 

"Shut up. Come on." Ashton heaved himself up off the couch and held out a hand for Luke.

"Where are we going?" Luke asked, eyeing the hand suspiciously. 

"To bed, duh. Where else?"

Luke blushed even harder but took Ashton's hand anyway. " _Your_ bed?" He eventually choked out, once they were already out of the room. Ashton looked over his shoulder at him, one eyebrow raised in amusement.

"Well, I was going to let you have the guest room again, but if you'd rather share with me..." He winked, mocking him, and Luke kind of half wanted the ground to swallow him whole because he had never been so embarrassed and there was no way Ashton couldn't see his red face. He opened his mouth to tell Ashton that the guest room was fine, but his tongue had a different idea.

"I would, actually. Rather share, I mean." He said. He bit his lip, looking down to avoid meeting Ashton's shocked gaze. After a moment of silence, Ashton laughed softly.

"Me, um...me too, actually." He admitted. Now they were both blushing. 

Luke felt immense relief at this admission. At least Ashton wasn't laughing at him, or, God forbid, awkwardly trying to tell him he's not interested. He hoped that this was Ashton's way of telling him he liked him, too. He figured Ashton realised that Luke had a slight (major) crush on him, and hoped he wasn't simply humouring him. 

"Come on, then. I'm tired and if we stay out here much longer I might just fall asleep where I stand, and you're far too scrawny to carry me to bed." Ashton laughed, breaking the awkward silence and suddenly it was okay again, the tension dissipated, and Luke followed him into his bedroom.

It was as messy as Luke remembered, and he tripped over a couple of things as he followed Ashton to the bed. 

"Want some sweats or something to sleep in?" Ashton offered. Luke nodded, grateful. Waking up in skinny jeans was not a pleasant thing to do, he knew from experience. 

"Yeah, please." 

Ashton rummaged through his drawers and then threw him a pair of grey sweatpants. Luke quickly took off his jeans and wriggled into the pants, unsure as to whether to remove his shirt or not. When he looked over, though, Ashton was climbing into the bed with nothing but some black boxers on. He half wanted to protest this decision and insist that the older boy put some clothes on. The other half of him wanted to have sex with him. Luke chose to do neither, instead slipping into the bed next to him without removing his shirt. 

As soon as he was under the covers he felt an arm around his waist and Ashton rolled towards him, pressing the two of them together. Luke tensed up, embarrassed by how much he liked the feeling. 

"You get to share my bed on one condition." Ashton mumbled, his face pressed against Luke's shoulder. Luke gulped.

"What's that?" He asked shakily. 

"We cuddle." 

"Oh. Okay then." Luke replied. He didn't move. After a minute or so, Ashton sighed.

"Luke, this isn't working. You're about as good as a pillow." Ashton complained.

"Um, sorry?" Luke wasn't sure whether to be offended or apologetic. Ashton rolled his eyes.

"You're supposed to cuddle _back_. That's how a cuddle works, Luke. It's just weird if you don't. Like cuddling a pillow." 

"God, Ashton. How old are you?" Luke couldn't help it. It was too funny. He started laughing, and immediately felt much more relaxed, especially when Ashton joined in. 

"I'm older than you." He eventually choked out, sticking his tongue out playfully. Luke rolled his eyes, but then froze, eyes widening slightly. Ashton stopped laughing, concerned.

"What's wrong Luke? What happened?" 

"Nothing, I'm fine. I just...it's nothing." He laughed awkwardly, looking away, but Ashton wasn't letting it go.

"It's not nothing. What's up?" 

"I just, well...I just remembered that it's my birthday today." He admitted, shrugging. Ashton didn't say anything, and after a few moments of silence Luke glanced at his face. Ashton looked appalled.

"You forgot your birthday?" 

"Well, my parents were still in bed when I got up this morning and I haven't checked my phone all day. Plus, I had gym, home economics and a free period today so I didn't need to know the date at all so I guess it kind of just slipped my mind..."

"Luke! You're an idiot! We didn't even celebrate!" Ashton looked truly devastated. 

"I don't usually do much. Today was probably the best birthday I've ever had, to be honest. Even if I didn't realise it was my birthday." Luke shrugged. He didn't see why it was such a big deal, really. Ashton seemed to disagree, though.

"I can't believe you, Luke. You know what, it's alright. We'll just celebrate tomorrow. How old are you?" 

"Seventeen." Luke mumbled, suddenly embarrassed. Ashton was nineteen, nearly twenty, and he was only just seventeen. He was far too young for him. Ashton didn't seem fazed, though.

"Okay, don't worry. We'll celebrate tomorrow."

"Ashton, we seriously don't have to do anything."

"Yeah, we do, Luke. Friends celebrate each other's birthdays, alright?" 

"Fine." Luke conceded finally, secretly feeling over the moon that he finally had friends that cared enough to want to celebrate his birthday. 

"Good. Okay, come on then, let's get some sleep." Ashton snuggled back into his side and this time Luke turned to face him, wrapping his arms around him and cuddling him back. 

It was purely to avoid Ashton throwing another hissy fit. It had nothing to do with Luke's urge to touch Ashton as much as possible. 

...

Luke was woken up the next morning by three loud, out of tune voices singing Happy Birthday To You above him. He groaned and rubbed his eyes, glaring at the three excited faces hovering over him.

"It's not even my birthday you assholes."

"Close enough. It's not our fault you're an idiot that _forgot_ his own seventeenth." Jesse retorted, disbelieving. 

"Yeah, Luke, that's ridiculous. We've been hanging out all week, and you didn't once think to tell me your birthday?" Calum asked, incredulous. Luke just shrugged.

"Sorry. Slipped my mind."

"Once again, you're an idiot, Lukey." Jesse stated.

"Alright, alright. We've established that the boy is an idiot. Come on, let's go eat pancakes." Ashton whined.

"Come on, guys. Can't I sleep a little bit longer? Since it's my birthday, and all." Luke pleaded. Calum and Ashton looked unsure, like they were considering letting him sleep, but Jesse snorted.

"It's not your birthday, stupid. That was yesterday." 

Calum and Ashton dissolved into giggles as she left the room, while Luke grumbled to himself and reluctantly dragged himself out of bed.

...

Luke was was pleasantly surprised by how much fun he actually had. They mostly just ate a lot, wandering around the town, popping in and out of shops and cafés and anything else they thought was interesting. Calum suggested a movie but they all agreed they'd seen enough films the night before.

Luke actually found himself feeling a little disappointed when Ashton pulled up outside Calum's house to drop him off. It was almost eleven, they'd been together all day, yet he still didn't want it to end. Jesse wanted to be dropped off at a friend's house not far from Calum's place so not long later it was just Luke and Ashton. Luke suddenly felt nervous.

"So have you had a good birthday?" Ashton grinned, glancing at Luke questioningly. Luke nodded, smiling back at him. 

"Yeah, it was great. Thanks Ash. It's really nice to finally have some real friends to celebrate with." He said, deciding to be honest despite being embarrassed. Ashton looked slightly put out.

"Yeah, friends." He muttered. Luke was confused by the slight tinge of bitterness in the older boys voice.

"What's wrong?" He asked, though he wasn't really expecting a straight answer. He certainly wasn't expecting Ashton to pull over at the side of the road, turn off the engine, and twist around so he was facing Luke. His expression was serious, and Luke felt himself starting to panic.

"Ashton, what's wrong? What did I do? I'm sorry, I-"

"Luke," Ashton cut him off, "I don't want to be your friend." 

Luke's shoulders slumped and he felt like he was falling from something really, really high. He bit his lip, fighting tears.

"Oh. Okay. Fine." He muttered, trying to keep his voice steady. 

"Oh, wait! No, I didn't mean it like that!" Ashton insisted, realising that he'd upset Luke. Suddenly, Luke felt angry.

"What? How the fuck else did you mean it then? Look, I know you're older than me and I'm not exactly the most interesting guy in the world but I genuinely thought you liked me, and it's really fucking cruel of you to do something like that, okay? I don't care if you felt sorry for me, all you've done is hurt me and-"

"Luke, stop! That's not what I meant at all!"

"Then what did you mean?" 

"Oh God," Ashton sighed, biting his lip, "I thought I'd made myself clear last night, but obviously not. Luke, what did you think that was?"

"What did I think _what_ was?"

"Last night, you, me, sharing a bed, cuddling..."

"I thought that was..." Luke paused, finding himself unsure as to exactly what he thought it was. He knew what he'd _wanted_ it to be, but other than that he had no idea, "I don't know."

"God, Luke. Okay, I might be completely humiliating myself here because I know I'm older than you and you might think that it's creepy and perverted but...I really like you, Luke. I don't want to be your friend because I want to kiss you and it's driving me _insane_ and I know if haven't known you long exactly but...yeah. I want to kiss you."

Luke was speechless. Ashton looked _ashamed_ of all things and he seemed to be growing more anxious by the second but Luke just couldn't convince his mouth to form any words.

"I'm sorry. I've made things awkward." Ashton spoke again after a few minutes of Luke gawping at him. Luke shook his head, trying to clear his thoughts. He took a deep breath and finally managed to choke out a reply.

"No. Um, it's fine. I just..."

"It's alright Luke. I get you don't feel the same, you don't need to say anything. I'll take you home and, um...can we still be friends?"

"No, we can't still be friends," Luke managed to compose himself, "because I kind of want to kiss you too and I was worried you didn't feel the same because I'm younger and stuff but you just said...that and I was really shocked but I do feel the same, I want to kiss you too Ash." Luke was panting slightly, worked up. Ashton looked surprised but his expression slowly morphed into relief and then excitement. 

"For real? You're not playing with me?" 

"Of course I'm not. Will you kiss me now, please?" Luke half whined, leaning towards the older boy almost unconsciously. Ashton smirked, eyes sparkling with humour.

"I don't know, maybe we shouldn't..."

"Ashton Irwin you're a fucking _prick_." Luke groaned, frustrated.

"Hey, be nice."

"Ashton." Luke's voice was softer now and despite his refusal Ashton was leaning in too, so their lips were millimetres apart and Luke desperately wanted to kiss him but he wanted Ashton to initiate it and he was being an annoying little shit. 

"Luke." Ashton mimicked him, moving in closer. Luke closed his eyes, waiting for contact. He counted to twenty and the suddenly the engine started up and his eyes flew open and he glared at Ashton in shock.

"You'd better not be fucking with me, Ashton, because this _so_ isn't funny." Luke glared at him, but his face was burning up and he felt humiliated because he should have _known_ , really! Ashton was only playing with him, he'd never actually like him in that way. But Ashton still had a flirtatious smile on his face and he looked over at Luke and winked.

"Patience, Lukey."

"Where are we going?"

"Back to my place. Or yours. Whichever you prefer. Though mine is closer..." He said, raising his eyebrows suggestively. 

"Your place is good. But I don't...I've never...I, um..." Luke was suddenly nervous, worried that Ashton was expecting more than Luke was prepared for, at least for now. Ashton looked bemused.

"Spit it out, Luke."

"I'm not having sex." Luke did exactly that. Ashton's eyes widened and he choked on laughter.

"Luke, babe, I wasn't...I didn't want you to have your first kiss in the front of my car. It looks romantic in the movies but it's awkward and uncomfortable and cliché in real life. I'm taking you to mine so we can snuggle and talk and, you know...whatever. I'm not going to drag you off to bed and jump you. I mean, don't get me wrong I'd love to, but that's not what this is."

Luke was blushing again, (he was beginning to think that the term 'blushing' was becoming synonymous with 'being around Ashton'), and he had to bite back an ecstatic grin at his words.

"Thank you, Ash." Luke said softly as Ashton pulled into his driveway. He received a blinding smile in response, and Ashton got out and sprinted around the car so he could grab Luke as soon as he'd gotten to his feet. He let him shut the door and then wrapped his arms around the blonde's waist, pulling him close, and then leading him toward the front door. Luke was walking backwards and being uncoordinated as he was, managed to stumble multiple times but Ashton kept him upright. They managed to get into the house but eventually Ashton pulled away from him so that he could lock the door. Luke left him to it, making his way into the lounge where he sat down on the couch, rubbing his sweaty palms on his jeans. He was nervous now. He'd never kissed anyone before and he was worried about being awkward and making Ashton laugh at him or whatever.

Ashton appeared in the doorway, smiling nervously. 

"You alright?"

"Yeah, I'm good." Luke assured him. Ashton made his way over to the couch, but rather than sitting down beside him like Luke expected, he pushed him back into the cushions and straddled his waist, leaning in so their lips were once again almost touching. 

"Happy Birthday Luke." Ashton murmured, and Luke could have _died_ because as he spoke his lips actually brushed against his own and then suddenly he could've sworn he really _was_ dead because Ashton was kissing him and he was kissing him back and his lips tasted like pancakes and _Ashton_ and if he weren't distracted he'd have been concerned about how corny he was becoming.

"It's not even my birthday." Luke managed to gasp when Ashton eventually pulled away for air. The older boy smiled, also breathless.

"Close enough." He chuckled lightly before reattaching their lips, hands still planted firmly on Luke's shoulders. Luke, however, decided to be adventurous and moved his own hands away from the other boy's hips and up across his back. Ashton sighed and Luke _swears_ it was an accident but he slipped his tongue into his mouth. Ashton looked momentarily surprised but then he took control and Luke had never really thought much about tongues but now he knew he wouldn't be able to _stop_ thinking about Ashton's.

Luke barely even realised he was doing it as he slid his hands down to Ashton's ass, but Ashton certainly did and his grip tightened on Luke's shoulders as he moaned, literally _moaned_ , into Luke's mouth and it was then that Luke realised he was _hard_. Gasping, he pulled away and pushed Ashton off him. The older boy manoeuvred himself so that he was kneeling on the couch beside Luke, a concerned expression on his face. 

"What's up, Luke?" 

"Nothing," Luke was blushing furiously, leaning his body forward to hide his crotch, embarrassed, "I'm fine. I was just...overwhelmed. That was one hell of a first kiss." He sighed, smiling, obviously fake. Ashton didn't speak, watching Luke thoughtfully, and after thirty seconds or so his mouth twisted in a curious smile.

"You're hard, aren't you?" He asked. Luke blushed harder but didn't say anything, and Ashton grinned. "Oh God, Luke. Hey, don't be embarrassed." Ashton tugged Luke's shoulder and their eyes met. Ashton leant in to kiss his lips again, softly this time.

"I'm not embarrassed. Not exactly." Luke started, then shrugged, "okay, I'm a little embarrassed. I kind of feel...really young and inexperienced."

"Don't feel like that, Luke. You're seventeen, that's not that young."

"Yeah, but you're almost twenty." 

"Three years is nothing, Luke. Unless you think it's weird, then-"

"No! I don't, I like you and I don't care that you're older, I just...I feel like a child."

"Trust me, Luke, I don't see you as a child in any way. And as for inexperience...I think that's pretty hot, actually. And I'm not exactly an expert myself." 

"What do you mean by that?" Luke asked. He hadn't realised until now but he was really curious to know about Ashton's experience. Specifically, whether he had had sex with a guy. 

"I'm a virgin, if that's what you mean." Apparently Ashton had read his mind. Luke smiled, slightly relieved. 

"Good. I mean...well, I'm glad I'm not alone." 

"So you feel better now?" 

"Yeah." 

"So I can kiss you some more?" Ashton looked hopeful and Luke couldn't have said no to him, even if he'd wanted to, which he certainly did not.

... 

An hour or so later saw Ashton dragging Luke upstairs to his bedroom. 

"Ashton." Luke whined when he pulled away to open his bedroom door. Ashton just laughed and muttered something that sounded like 'dinky hatstand' but could also have been 'clingy bastard' and Luke pouted but didn't protest when he kissed him again.

They'd already both lost their shirts and, yawning, Ashton pulled away to peel off his black skinny jeans. Luke did the same, grinning when Ashton offered him some sweatpants again.

"You like seeing me wearing your clothes, Ash?" Luke joked. Ashton shrugged, unabashed.

"Yeah. Sue me. You look hot in my clothes. Even if they're too short." He winked, pulling Luke down into the bed with him. 

"As much as I want to, I don't think I can kiss you again, I'm so tired." Luke admitted, eyes falling shut. Ashton giggled.

"I know a way I could wake you up..." He wiggled his eyebrows suggestively. Luke's face coloured again but he laughed.

"Are you propositioning me?" 

"Depends what you mean by proposition. If you mean, like, a business proposition, then no. If you mean, am I offering you a blowjob? Then yes. Yes I am." 

Luke's eyes widened and he spluttered, choking on his own tongue. Ashton watched him amusedly as he tried to sort himself out.

"Are you serious?" Luke finally choked out. Ashton shrugged.

"Why not? It's your birthday, after all."

"I, um, I just...I've never had, um...I've never had one before. A blowjob, I mean." 

"Don't worry, it's pretty simple. You just lie there and look pretty." Ashton laughed. Luke scowled.

"That's not what I mean. I just...I don't know if I'm ready."

"Hey, don't feel like I'm pressuring you. I just thought I'd offer. Since it's your birthday, and all. We can just go to sleep if you'd prefer." Ashton promised him, smiling, and Luke knew for a fact that he was being honest, that he was perfectly okay with what Luke wanted. Briefly, he wondered how he'd gotten this lucky. He even considered pinching himself, but a) he didn't want to look crazy, and b) if he _was_ dreaming, he certainly didn't want to wake up. Eventually, just as Ashton was about to lie down and snuggle into him, he heaved out a shaky sigh and nodded.

"Um, okay...okay then. Since it's my birthday. If you want to. I mean, if you don't, I don't mind at all. It's been a long day and-"

"Shut up and look pretty, Luke." Ashton instructed him sternly. He then winked, grinned, and shuffled down to the end of the bed.

...

When Luke woke up the next morning the first thing he thought was that he was fucking _freezing_. The next was that he wasn't alone in bed. 

He then realised that the reason he was cold was that he wasn't wearing any clothes, (Ashton had discarded his boxers somewhere on the other side of the room), and the covers he had fallen asleep underneath were no longer covering him. 

Next, he realised that he wasn't alone in bed because Ashton was still beside him.

(Memories of the previous night came flooding back and he blushed, embarrassed once again by how loud he'd been and how quickly he'd come, despite Ashton's insisting that it was hot, and there was nothing wrong with that since it was his first time.)

He looked over at Ashton and smiled. The older boy had managed to simultaneously wrap his arms and legs around Luke and still somehow keep all the blanket to himself. Luke rolled his eyes but wriggled closer to Ashton, suddenly feeling less cold. 

The next time he woke up it was because Ashton was poking his face repeatedly. He groaned as he came to. Him and Ashton were still tangled up together, only now the sheets had fallen to the floor. 

And Jesse was stood at the side of the bed, arms folded and eyebrows raised as she glared at them pointedly.

"You guys have a lot of explaining to do." She told them, fighting a smile. Luke shifted, embarrassed. Jesse hastily shut her eyes and turned away. "But first Luke needs to put some clothes on!"

Luke blushed harder than ever before, harder even than last night, and sheepishly clambered over Ashton and grabbed the first pair of jeans he could find (Ashton's; he realised this when he pulled them up and they stopped above his ankles) and muttered hasty apologies. 

Ashton just laughed hysterically until Jesse threw a shoe at him.

**Author's Note:**

> If you got this far thank you so much and feedback would be much appreciated!


End file.
